With Houston native Beyoncé teasing a country album and dropping single Texas Hold ‘Em, South by Southwest music festival rocking up to Austin in March and more seasonal celebrations afoot (including St Patrick’s Day and spring break), the Lone Star state is so hot right now (figuratively speaking – the weather is actually enjoyably mild).
So, we’re jumping on the many-bands wagon and getting the lowdown on what to do and where to go in Texas this spring, from dining on chef-recommended breakfast tacos and barbecue, to finding ‘keep it weird’ souvenirs and hunting down fun-loving honky-tonks…
Jo’s Coffee (image by Alison Marlborough)
AUSTIN
Breakfast tacos, tarot readings and omakase cocktails
This weirdly wonderful alt-city swells as South by Southwest festival kicks off, with thousands of city-wide events in fields from art to LGBTQ+ talks to tech. It’s immense fun, but requires stamina; partake in chilled-out style at the free South by San José party held in Hotel San José’s carpark, a collab with breakfast-taco institution Jo’s Coffee (whose craft workshops, games nights, and annual chilli cook-out and ‘ugly dog contest’ will draw you back throughout the year).
South by San José (images by Chad Wadsworth)
Before succumbing to frosés and spicy micheladas, nab rainbow kimonos and retro paisley bedding from the hotel’s boutique. For more offbeat mementoes – and a nod to Austin’s Fashion Week in April – South Congress Hotel has a personal shopper to find you fringed caftans and art-piece clutches at Sunroom, and its front-office manager Michael Martinec loves retro finds at Feathers Vintage, on-point menswear at Stag Provisions and curios from Big Top Candy Shop. And Austin Proper Hotel can help you build preppy fits at ByGeorge and general manager Kristen Whyly recommends Maufrais for mod cowboy headgear; while Hotel Magdalena stocks cult beauty products. Lasso your look with custom boots from iconic cobbler Allens.
You’ll need them to look the part at Rodeo Austin (8 to 23 March), a buck-ing good time with daredevil riders, country concerts and a laden barbecue. Or find a juiced-up bronco at Revival motorbikes (whose stylish hogs are neon or leather-fringed) to hit scenic outskirt trails: Hippie Hollow Horror to the northwest or Texas Twister through hill country; or ride out to Bluebonnet House or Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in pursuit of fresh spring blooms.
From 23 to 26 March, a trio of hospitality honchos (James Beard-winner Aaron Franklin, Mohawk bar-owner James Moody and Feast Portland co-founder Mike Thelin) run Hot Luck Festival: three days of smoking, grilling and gnawing on more meaty bones than a Brit monarch can toss over their shoulder. But there’s much more to Austin’s belt-loosening culinary scene – Yoshi Okai (executive chef at Otoko) loves Justine’s, a fun French brasserie with a naughty side and photobooth, Suerte for sophisticated South-of-the-Border eats (and mezcal shots), and lively Clark’s Oyster Bar. While Austin Proper general manager Kristen Whyly craves fill-your-boots barbecue at Lamberts (in a refurbished general store) or flavoursome tacos from lauded eatery Nixta.
Justine’s Brasserie (image by Barbara FG)
It’s sacrilege to not pack your diary with gigs or get a little weird in ATX. Do the former at Pecan Street Festival (4 and 5 May), the bluesy Continental Club or Antone’s, with craft drinks at Meanwhile Beer, or the Elephant Room or Monk’s Jazz Club for soulful eves (both beloved by South Congress Hotel staffers). Then hang with local jukebox-ninjas, playing shuffleboard at Frazier’s Long and Low (beloved by Billy Weston, general manager of Otoko and Watertrade), dress the part for cocktails at enigmatic Here Nor There, or experience omakase cocktails at Watertrade. For the latter, the Line Austin offers tarot readings and yurt dining (and a series of watch-along-with-Top-Chef meals, celebrating the show’s new host chef Kristen Kish, head of their restaurant Arlo Grey), Sister Palm reads hands at Carpenter Coffee Bar, and when there’s a full moon, join the crowds cathartically howling at it before restorative swims at Barton Springs.
ROUND TOP
Treasure hunting, two-stepping and classical music
Round Top is a pocket square of a place in the vast expanse of Texas. A town just one square mile in size, its population hovers around a hundred, adding a cultured air to the countryside with its spectacle of an antiques fair and arts programming. And they’ve squeezed in some rootin’-tootin’ hangouts, mom ‘n’ pop eateries and historic homesteads to mosey through.
The Original Round Top Antiques Fair
The Antiques Fair is such a big deal that it overspills the town, running along Highway 237 and out over a 20-mile radius, drawing around 100,000 enthusiasts; rise early, wear comfy footwear, hone your haggling skills and make time to mingle. There are fascinating characters here, but none quite so much as de facto queen of Round Top, Sheila Youngblood, whose colourful kaftans and headgear that would make Pharrell Williams blush make her easy to spot. Each year, at her magical retreat Rancho Pillow, she hosts Feasts in the Field at a snaking table set with fair finds, hosting dinner for 200 guests, showcasing chefs from around the country (this year, Venezuelan artist and chef Karla Subero Pittol) and ending with storytelling under the stars.
Rancho Pillow
And now, a musical interlude at the Round Top Festival Institute, which stages chamber music concertos, piano recitals, poetry readings and soundpainting sessions. Come April, see A Midsummer Night’s Dream as part of Shakespeare at Winedale’s spring season, and muse over artwork by locals at the Gallery at Round Top and paintings by John R Lowery at his Humble Donkey Studio, then swing by the oldest building in the area, 19th-century Moore’s Fort. Duck-confit tacos, chilli dogs and craft brews honed over generations await at family-run Round Top Brewing & Kitchen, and Royers Pie Haven is a must-make dessert stop (be sure to rummage into the signature Texas trash pie) before you hit the honky tonks…
Stone Cellar, set in a repurposed train depot, is a favourite for its enjoyably rowdy music programme, and next door there are niche and luxury brands to browse at the 550 Market, with elegant speakeasy the Mark tucked inside. And feel like part of the community at the Welcome Texas General Store, which has a stomping music scene, an original shuffleboard from the 1960s, karaoke and local bingo nights with 20 per cent of the profits put towards local services.
SAN ANTONIO
Pickleball, St Patrick’s Day and riverside drinks
Well-remembered as home of the Alamo, river walks, theme-park thrills and colonial churches – this season, historic San Antonio is the life and soul of the party in Texas. It’s spring break (but not ‘spring break, woo!’), ideal for families and friendship groups, and the weather is outdoorsy as can be, so you’ll fully enjoy the city, from the cultural corridor of Brackenridge Park to the Retrofuturist Tower of the Americas (with clear views from its observation deck) and surrounding Hemisfair park.
In March pack something green and gird yourself for St Patrick’s Day, where Celtic jigs and reels, and the dyeing of the river an emerald hue before a boat parade, are sandwiched between beer crawls (well, Bud Light is its sponsor). There are family activities (such as stroller-race the Shamrock Shuffle) and craftwares to buy too. On a more leisurely, less-crowded day in spring, stagger riverside pit stops between bars such as Durty Nelly’s or Waxy O’Connors (to keep it old-country), the Pearl lifestyle complex, Hugman’s Oasis for Tiki cocktails, the jaguar-headed man-made Grotto, and wood-lined bar of the Menger Hotel, where Teddy Roosevelt rallied his Rough Riders.
The Ranch Motel & Leisure Club
In April, Fiesta San Antonio comes in sizzling colour, with lavish parades. The illuminated Flambeau night parade, scintillating hues of the Battle of Flowers and pomp of the Texas Cavaliers River Parade garner ‘oohs and aahs’, before Louisiana-style feasts, block parties and jazz stylings at the Fiesta in Blue. On 8 April, nature schedules her own show, with a total eclipse. Then she’ll calm you down at Camp Hot Wells in bubbling sulphuric springs. On the alt-wellness front, McNay Art Museum combines creativity and spirituality with wellness, yoga and crafting sessions, and the delightfully throwback Ranch Motel & Leisure Club offers the sporting life, with pool, pickleball courts (opening in April alongside a listening room with turntables), table-tennis, foosball and bocce.
According to Joey Boatright (the motel’s general manager), your morning-after best friend is Extra Fine Cafe, whose Cafe de Olla (black coffee with Mexican brown sugar, spices and orange) will knock you awake; and Con Huevos for breakfast tacos. On 9 May get a taste of the city’s food scene at San Antonio Flavor fest, but save room for Mod Med dinners at Ladino. After dark, get your boots a’tapping to country at reopened Stable Hall or honky-tonk the Lonesome Rose. Like the Western look, but don’t want to commit? Son of a Sailor store has subtle accoutrements: leather-wrapped whiskey knives, gold wishbone earrings, ombré-painted horseshoes.
FORT WORTH
Gallery hopping, goat yoga and brewing up a storm
Saddle up for spring in Fort Worth, whether you’re planning to learn more about the Mexican pioneers of the Wild West at the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame’s Soldaderas to Amazonas: Escaramuzas Charras exhibition (if you’re feeling inspired, Benbrook Stables can trot you out on a leafy trail ride) or get a rush at the Texas INDY 365 motorsports races.
National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame
Base yourself at cool hideaway Hotel Dryce (a portmanteau name nodding to its former life as a dry-ice factory) where you can enjoy vinyl Mondays, wine and cheese Thursdays and the monthly Queer Professionals Night in the bar. It’s close to Dickies Arena, which hosts big-deal bands, sports events, rodeos, ice shows and more; and the Cultural District’s many attractions. At the latter, the Botanic Garden’s fruit trees, narcissus, pansies and snapdragons are bearing and blooming and the April Japanese Festival coats the place in cherry blossoms; Sundance Square is a vibrant hub with a cinema, comedy club, galleries, theaters and a jazz lounge; and Fort Worth Zoo has a new baby gorilla to coo over. Sadly, you can’t cuddle her, but you can get up close with a furry friend at goat-yoga sessions.
Hotel Dryce
This season, DFW citizens dine and drink like champs. In March, get a seafood fix at the Cowtown Crawfish Boil; while May’s Tacos and Tequila Festival has much more than shots, with salsa competitions, car shows, Lucha Libre matches and a packed R ‘n’ B line-up (Ashanti, Flo rida, Xzibit…); the Fort Worth Food and Wine Festival and Vino Palooza go hard on the grape, while Hops and Props beer festival celebrates the grain. But, the eating’s fine year-round with restaurants such as Bonnell’s serving classics with a Southern accent (say, oysters ‘Texasfeller’ with smoked ham and spinach), pitmastery at Goldee’s or Brix barbecue joints; and fist-sized biscuits, drizzled in local honey, at Fixe Southern House.
After dark, we’re all mad for the Mad Hatter’s Neighbourhood Pub, which warmly welcomes Fort Worth newbies. And y’all are invited to Liberty Lounge, which – as an LGBTQ+ community hub – opens its arms to everyone, and has a packed programme, from bear tea dances to art markets to a book club; and the more you drink, the more a local charity benefits from the profit. And the Longhorn Saloon might have very ‘cheeky’ barstools and drinks with names like ‘duck fart’ but it’s all good clean fun, with a top line-up of artists to two-step to.
All gee’d up? Check out our full collection of luxury and boutique hotels in Texas.
(Header image of Antone’s Nightclub, Austin, by Salihah Saadiq)